You Shine Brighter
by DecemberWildfire
Summary: Drew and May move on to Fiore, where contests run differently. They get separated for a long time until reuniting in Wintown. However, other love interests have come into their lives along the way. Fall City hosts a coordinator's ball. Will it be a night to remember, or one they'll wish they could forget? (Contestshipping)
1. New Horizons

A/N: FINALLY writing a new story. It's been a while. I've been feeling inspired lately.

So, for once, this story is NOT based on a Flyleaf song lol. It's actually based on experiences from my own life. It'll be a little spiritual later on, as usual. If you don't dig spiritual stuff, sorry. That's just how I write.

For anyone who doesn't know, Fiore is the region from the first Pokemon Ranger game.

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon or anything else referenced in this story.

* * *

"Wow. Who would've thought he'd actually pull it off…" she muttered.

Harley had just won the Johto Grand Festival. She was disappointed that she lost, but deep down she was happy for him. He was up there, eating up all of the attention and praises being thrown at him. It was the proudest moment of his life.

Drew on the other hand, was not so happy. Harley had defeated him in the final round; otherwise, he would have been the one standing up there in all the glory. He didn't necessarily hate Harley anymore, as he had gotten much better over the years. Rather, he was feeling discouraged. "Eight years," he thought. "EIGHT YEARS since I started competing. Why can't I win? When will my time EVER come?"

But of course, he kept all of that hidden inside. After all, he had his cocky reputation to keep up. He walked up to May, who was congratulating Harley.

"Don't worry, dollface. Now losing to me won't be an issue for you, because I think I'll take some time off. Me and my lovely, shiny ribbon cup here. It's just gorgeous, isn't it?"

She rolled her eyes and gave a light smile. Good old Harley. He was a character, that's for sure.

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"So, what's next for you?" Drew asked. He and May were out on Cianwood's beach that night. They always hung out at night after a contest ended. Their travels together in Johto had made them the best of friends, whether they liked to admit it or not.

"Um… well, I, uh…"

"You have no idea, do you?" he said with his classic, arrogant tone of voice.

"Well, I haven't heard about any other competitions taking place…"

"So out of the loop, as usual." He flipped his hair and pulled up a map on his PokeNav. He searched for "Ringtown" and handed her the device.

"It's called the Fiore region. It's famous for its Pokemon rangers and their practices, but just recently they've started having contests over there. And it's only open to advanced coordinators who have competed in at least one Grand Festival."

"Is that where you're going?"

"Duh. It's where ALL the highly trained coordinators are going. Come on, May, where did you _think_ I'd be going?"

She groaned and rolled her eyes, starting to walk away. She stopped and turned around. "Drew, I know you're just joking around and all, but I really think I'd like to go with you there. It's, um… it's been nice traveling with you here."

He smirked and looked at her with his dazzling emerald eyes. "I agree. It's been fun. You were really something else out there, taking Robert down like that."

He tossed her a rose and she blushed. "Meet me by the dock on Sunday at noon, and we'll take the ferry over to Fiore. It'll be a long trip, so I hope you're not one to get seasick."

With one final hair flip, he was off. She had a hard time containing her excitement.

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Sunday came. May and Drew were on their long voyage to the new region, along with all of the other top-notch coordinators.

Drew was reading the instruction booklet that they were all given. "So, we'll get off at Fall City, take a train over to Ringtown, and that's where orientation is."

"We have orientation?" she asked all puzzled.

"Yes, May. You'd know this if you would've read the instructions. Contests are different in Fiore."

"Hey, you two!"

They turned around to find a tall, pink-haired woman walking up to them.

"Solidad! It's so good to see you!" May ran up for an embrace. Drew hair flipped, which she knew was his way of saying he was happy to see her as well.

"Are you gonna compete in Fiore?" May asked.

"Actually, no. I'm going to visit a relative. I'd love to, but I feel that my Pokemon and I need a rest. We've been competing nonstop for 10 years with no leisure. But I'm glad you guys are keeping up. I hear it's really intense over there in Fiore, but I know you both will be incredible. You know I'll be supporting you all the way!"

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After many hours, the large group of coordinators arrived in Ringtown. They were waiting inside the town's team base, when in due time a green-haired man started talking into a microphone.

"Good afternoon, trainers! My name is Spenser, and I speak for all of Ringtown when I say that we are honored to be your hosts. Contests are fairly new to our region, but we are excited and privileged to have such skilled and talented coordinators like you all to show us what we've been missing all these years!"

"So, let's just get right down to it. Here's how it's gonna work: we have several ongoing contests in various locations all across Fiore, but only limited entries are permitted for each one. So we are going to assign you all to different contest halls by random selection, once we get your information into our system. You will receive a message on your PokeNav no less than one week before each contest, informing you which location you've been assigned. You will need to check in at your assigned hall at least four days prior to the contest."

"Also, there are MANDATORY training sessions at each contest hall. You must attend the training sessions with your designated Pokemon for that contest in order to be eligible to compete at said contest. You will be assigned different time slots for the sessions, and you will be given a time card to clock in and out of your session. You must train for five hours each day for the required four days. You can do the straight five hours, or split it up into two and three hours, with an hour break in between. At the end of the four days, you will turn your time card in to the hall's supervisor."

May was beginning to feel intimidated. "Wow, Solidad wasn't kidding when she said it was going to be intense…"

"There's a reason why they only accept advanced coordinators here," Drew said.

Spenser continued. "Fiore used to only have contests and events at our four main cities, but this past year, we've expanded and are now hosting contests in all of the connecting routes throughout the entire region."

He wrapped up the speech. "This may all sound overwhelming right now, but once you get in the swing of things, it'll all fall into place. We believe that since you've all made it this far, you'll be phenomenal in these contests. Are you ready to show Fiore what you've got?!"

The crowd cheered loudly and was super fired up. They all proceeded to the front desk where they registered their information to be assigned their first locations.

The madness slowly settled down as the others were leaving the base. Drew and May went to the Pokemon Center they were staying at and hung out in the lobby, anxiously awaiting their messages to see where they'd be sent first.

Eventually, their PokeNavs buzzed. May was staying in Ringtown. Drew was being sent to Olive Jungle. This was going to be the first time since their early Johto days that they wouldn't be competing at the same contest or traveling together.

"Well… guess this is it," May said. She couldn't help but feel sad inside that she and Drew were going to be separated.

Drew felt that too, but with a hair flip and snarky tone, he said, "Heh, better train hard, then. 'Cause when we meet again, you _know _I'm taking you down."

* * *

A/N: I know this intro chapter was kinda dry, with a bunch of instructions and whatnot. But I promise the rest won't be like that.


	2. Here We Go Again

May was up bright and early the next morning. There was a week before the first contest, and this was day one of her assigned training sessions.

She went to the contest hall and clocked in. Felt like a part-time job. Inside the training room was a huge gym, full of obstacle courses and challenges for Pokemon. There were also things outside, for the trainer's choosing. May sent out Glaceon and had it start off by shooting ice beam at the moving targets. She slowly elevated to things like jumping through the rings of fire and into the pool of water, crafting different things out of ice.

Five hours passed. Glaceon was exhausted. May called her Pokemon back and clocked out. She repeated this routine for the next few days, as required. Both she and Glaceon were completely beat by the end. On the last day, she was waiting around in the clocking room with a couple other trainers for the last few minutes to pass.

She held Glaceon's Pokeball in her hand. "Man, this whole mandatory training thing is crazy," she muttered under her breath.

"Tell me about it, girl. It's ridiculous," a guy in the room blurted out. "Apparently they think that because we're experienced, we need to be challenged so intensely that we're sure to put on a good show. Excuse me, but I don't remember signing up for this when I became a coordinator…"

He was being sarcastic. He seemed like a naturally funny, sassy guy.

"Ha, I can agree with that! Hi, I'm May."

"I'm Nate," he said. "Ugh, these last minutes take FOREVER. It's still only 4:55."

"It's actually 4:56," his friend said.

"It is four, FIFTY FREAKING SIX." Nate had been entertaining the whole room with his antics. He was a fun person. He and May trained together the next couple days and became friends. They would soon face off in the final round of the Ringtown contest.

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It was that time again. Time to train like there was no tomorrow. Time to finally win a ribbon cup. Drew arrived at Olive Jungle and registered for his training. It wasn't a city, so there wasn't much there. Just the contest hall, a Pokemon Center, and a couple small restaurants.

He sent out Absol and had it run through the outdoor obstacle course. He spent extra time practicing its razor wind move, which was an attack it had always struggled with in the past. He wasn't particularly worried about this first contest, as there would be many after it and he felt pretty confident already. He was more concerned about staying on top of his game so that May wouldn't advance ahead of him in her training. It had only been a day since they went separate ways, but he was already so eager for their next battle.

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The day came. Both May and Drew battled it out in their respective contests. The fire was burning once again.

May lost to Nate in the Ringtown contest. Drew on the other hand won the final round in his contest and received his first Fiore ribbon. He was already on his way.

They received their next location assignments. May to Sekra Range, Drew to Lyra Forest. They made their travels, wondering if they'd run into each other on the way. They never did.

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Time passed. Day and night they trained and prepared for contests. They were being sent all over the map, never being in the same contest as each other. Eventually, they started getting so caught up in the madness that they rarely thought about each other anymore. Competing felt more important. It was all that their lives were anymore.

* * *

A/N: So, Nate is obviously a character I made up, and he's actually based on a guy I work with; the sassiest man I know xD lol. But yeah, he's awesome. A lot of this story was inspired by my workplace, so that kind of stuff is probably gonna come out a lot.

I'll post the next chapter soon.


	3. Hello, Prince Charming?

Four months had passed since May's arrival in Fiore. She had competed in many contests and so far had won three ribbons. She was now in Kisara Plains, checking into the contest hall.

Besides the hall and the Pokemon center, there was a small restaurant, as well as a coffee shop called Koffing's Koffee. That place seemed to be the hangout spot for the coordinators in the area. May decided to check it out.

It was a nice place. There was a lounge area, classy music quietly playing, and free wifi. She looked over at one of the tables and saw two guys playing guitars in the lounge chairs. She recognized it as the acoustic version of Flyleaf's "Again." She loved that song. Those guys were really good. She went over to compliment them.

"Hey, thanks so much. That really means a lot," one of the guys said. "My name is Sam, and this is Brian." May said hi, but Brian seemed less friendly.

"Would you like to sit down?" Sam asked. She joined them and they all got acquainted. They were both coordinators who were competing in Ringtown just west of there. Also musicians. Best friends. Sam was very friendly, but Brian was pretty quiet the whole time. She got the sense that he didn't like her, but she didn't mind.

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The next day, May went to the training session, but took a break after three hours. She went to the coffee shop to caffeinate herself. She had been up since pretty early that morning.

After a few minutes, she saw Sam walk in. He approached her, asking if she'd like to join him. He led her to a table and pulled her chair out like a gentleman. The two talked nonstop about everything under the sun. He seemed like the nicest guy she'd ever met. But then again, maybe that was because she was so used to hanging around Drew back in the day and his constant teasing.

Sam was only a year older than her. He was an engineering student in college. Very intelligent guy. He loved Jesus. He liked the music she liked. Enjoyed the things she enjoyed. And about halfway through their conversation, she couldn't help but notice how unbelievably handsome he was.

And so it began.

"I love going swing dancing. I hear there's a really cool place in Fall City. Maybe you'd like to check it out with me sometime?"

She blushed. "That sounds like fun. But I think I might be a little too clumsy for that…"

He smiled his beautiful smile. "That's okay, no need to worry about that. They'll teach you. Besides, I think it's cute when a girl is a little clumsy. Graceful is overrated."

For some reason, that sounded like the sweetest thing she'd ever heard. She blushed harder.

"Oh shoot! I have to be back at my session in less than two minutes!" she started to freak out. "This was nice, and I really hate to leave like this, but I need to go…" and after tripping over a couple chairs and looking back a couple times, she was off.

Running back to the hall, she didn't even care about how tired and out of breath she was. She couldn't stop smiling and blushing harder than ever before. This guy was like no other. She found her prince charming.

_And from then on, May and Sam hung out at Koffing's Koffee every day. Never a dull moment._

* * *

A/N: Yes, I had to bring Flyleaf into this somehow, even if it was just a small part. DEAL WITH IT. :P


	4. I'm a Dancer

Summerland was a popular spot for vacationing and relaxing. But not for Drew. Every moment of every day he was training somehow. He was at his fourth session for the week.

"Roselia, solar beam again! More power this time! COME ON!"

The rose Pokemon launched the attack with all of its strength, but it still wasn't enough to burst through the steel wall.

"Come on, I know you're better than that!"

"You should feed it more Pokeblocks," a girl said from behind. "It'll never get strong enough from just you yelling at it."

Annoyed, he turned away and said in a snotty tone, "Thanks, but I think I can raise my own Pokemon myself. Mind your own business."

"Don't you take advice from _anyone_? I'm just trying to help, you know…" she said.

"Oh, back off, Cari," another woman's voice said. She came beside Drew to grab some Frisbees for her training. Finally looking at him, she said, "Don't listen to her. I don't know about you, but I hate it when people tell me what to do."

He could surely relate to that.

"If you want, you can join me over there. The sunlight's stronger on the east side of the beach at this time of day. It could help your solar beam. Up to you, though." She said all this as she was already walking away. She seemed pretty intense in her training as well.

He figured why not. He walked over to where she was, and saw her training a Milotic. She threw the Frisbees in the air, having it hit each one with a different attack. It was done beautifully. It followed up with a graceful jump-flip in the air, and froze the water it splashed when it landed, forming glittering crystals. She was one talented trainer.

And she was right. The stronger sunlight helped Roselia break through the steel.

"Very nice," the girl said.

Hours passed and the sun started to set, and there was a light breeze. As he looked over, he finally noticed how gorgeous this girl was. She looked like a model. Maybe she was.

Their session ended. She called her Milotic back and started walking. Looking his way, she said, "Ya know, I like you. You're not a total pushover like lots of trainers are. You stick to your own methods. I respect that."

Drew was filled with pride and did a couple hair flips as he talked to her. He enjoyed her company. She was the first decent girl he'd encountered in four months who wasn't fangirling over him. She was independent and chill.

"Well, it was cool chatting with you. I gotta run. I'll see you at the contest?"

With a hair flip, he said, "You know it."

He watched her walk off, hair and dress softly blowing in the breeze. Suddenly he called out, "Hey, wait! What's your name?"

She turned and smiled. "Liz. Liz Wilson."

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The contest day arrived. There were a lot of contenders there, as it was a large town. Unfortunately for Drew, he got knocked out in the first round. His opponent was ridiculously tough. That said opponent made it to the final round, and as Drew watched the battle on the screen, he saw that Liz was the other finalist. It was an insane battle, and the crowd went wild. Liz's Milotic ended up knocking out the opponent's Alakazam in little time and she took the victory.

Drew went up to congratulate her at the end. She flipped her hair back and thanked him. The two walked out together and hung out for a while. She was very well-mannered, but also could be playfully snarky when she wanted to. He quite enjoyed that.

"That was a seriously impressive battle. You destroyed that guy! You're gonna be famous someday."

"Heh, yeah, I bet you'd know all about that, Mr. Cool Guy," she said sarcastically.

He just laughed. He had never met someone who was so much like him. She flipped her hair like he did. She was snarky and yet sweet. Intelligent and talented. That was very attractive to him.

"It was good seeing you again Drew. Now I've gotta get to the studio."

"Studio? More training?"

She laughed. "No, silly. I'm a dancer."

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There was a professional dance recital at the studio that night. Liz invited Drew to come, and though he wasn't really interested in that sort of thing, he really wanted to see her some more. It was a shorter performance, but she was the main act.

She looked beautiful. She danced so elegantly. So much grace. So much passion. She could be in the Olympics if she wanted to. He started to blush without realizing it when she looked his way. The light hit her in a way that made her shine bright. It seemed that she had more beauty and elegance than even her Milotic.

Lying awake that night, he couldn't stop thinking about her. They would be migrating once again the next day, but he just had to see her again.

* * *

A/N: More chapters coming soon.


	5. Nice To See You Again

By now May had lost count of how many times she'd changed locations for contests. This time she was being sent to Wintown. She looked forward to getting someplace with cooler weather. All the routes with the blazing sun had become tiresome.

Drew was also on his way to Wintown. He only had to win one more ribbon, so he was seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. Fiore contests had been the hardest he'd ever experienced by far, but still he was confident that this time, he would be the one to walk away with the ribbon cup. _Just one more ribbon._

May walked into the contest hall as Drew was walking out. They both did a double-take in sync and their hearts jumped when they realized who they were looking at. Five long months. They were finally together again.

"Hey…." They both said, nervously smiling. "So, uh… how's training going? How many ribbons have you won?"

They just made small talk for a few minutes, and then Drew had to get to his session. But before leaving, he turned back and said, "Hey. It really is good to see you again." He gave a genuine smile and left.

She didn't realize that she had been standing there still for a couple straight minutes, blushing and watching him walk away. "Excuse me? Miss?" the receptionist snapped her back. May checked in and headed out. She went by the town's team base to see if anything exciting was happening in town.

The team base was the hot spot where all the rangers hung out. The town's leader Elita began speaking into a mic that reached the whole town.

"Attention, Wintown! Anyone who is planning to take the city's train to Fall City this weekend, please make sure you arrive at the station on time. There will be other passengers who need to catch ferries, so there will be no time to delay. If you haven't purchased your ticket to the Fall City ball, also known as Fall Con, you can do so at the base's front desk."

This excited May. _A ball. _She needed a date, and knew exactly who she wanted to ask.

Sam.

However, it was the whole asking part that terrified her. She had never done that before. She was now realizing that she was 18 years old and had never been on a real date. _How did that happen?_

She felt madly in love with Sam. Even just thinking about him gave her the butterflies. He was the highlight of her days. She cared so deeply for him. She'd give her life for him if she had to. They had hung out every day for a while, but she hadn't seen him since leaving for Wintown. The last time she saw him was when she went to see his band perform at a music festival. He was so amazing.

She wanted to ask him to the ball, but also needed to do something else: tell him how she felt. He wasn't competing in Wintown that week, so she pulled out her PokeNav and messaged him.

"Hey :) will you be around Fall City next week? I'd really love to check out that swing club!"

Minutes later, he replied:

"I might be! If I don't get assigned there, I could come by if you'd like."

Blushing and with a heart pounding faster than what's healthy, she simply said:

"Sounds good!"

* * *

A/N: "Fall Con" was actually the name of a trip I went on with my ministry group last year (: it wasn't a ball lol, but I thought the name flowed nicely in this context.


	6. Will You Go To Fall Con With Me?

Drew overheard the announcement from Elita. Dances weren't his thing, but what immediately came to mind was the fact that it could be an opportunity to spend time with Liz. The only problem was, he had no way to contact her and hadn't seen her since they were in Summerland.

But he put that aside for now. He focused his attention on the contest, which was the next day.

Drew and May were dominating through the preliminary round and their first battles. Soon enough they were facing each other. Glaceon vs. Masquerain. The seconds ticked by and the two were neck-in-neck. Even with May's type advantage, Drew wasn't going down easily. Eventually though, the time ran out, and May had just a couple more points than Drew, making her the winner.

The crowd roared. It wasn't too often that May defeated Drew. Now she was tied with him, with four ribbons. Drew was proud of her. He always was whenever she beat him.

Normally he'd give her a rose on occasions like this, but this time, he noticed that he only had one with him. He wanted to save it for someone else…

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It was 9:00 at night and lightly snowing. May was waiting at the train station. It was running late. "So much for being on time," she thought.

Drew found her there and walked up beside her. "You're looking a bit pale, May. Are you _that _cold?"

She smiled and looked down. "No, I'm fine. Just… nervous."

"About what?" He looked slightly puzzled.

"Well…" she trailed off. She looked at him with a sassy look on her face. "I'm not sure if I should talk about this with you. You'll make fun of me."

"Well, I can't guarantee that I _won't_," he said with a hair flip.

She rolled her eyes. "Oh Drew, you're still the same old you. Well, okay. I guess I should talk to someone about it. So… there's this guy… and I really like him. I think I might love him, actually."

Drew's heart stopped for a second. Why? _Why did it do that? It's not like he had feelings for her anymore. He liked Liz…_

Not knowing how to feel or react, he managed, "Go on."

"And, I want to ask him to Fall Con. I have to tell him how I feel, but… I'm just so scared of doing that. I don't know how he'll react, and I don't want this to ruin the friendship, but I feel like it will if he doesn't feel that way… oh, who am I kidding? He's gonna say no. I should just turn around and not get on this train…"

She started freaking out a little and got up to leave, when Drew caught her by the arm.

"You're NOT gonna chicken out of this. Listen…" he led her to sit down with him on the bench. "Sometimes you just need to take risks. You took a risk when you left home. You took a risk when you decided to become a coordinator. You took a risk when you came with me to Fiore. Think about all that you would've missed out on if you didn't take those chances. If this guy cuts you out because you tell him you like him, then he's a jerk who was never worth being friends with. Just do it."

She sat there thinking for a moment. Drew may be a cocky, arrogant know-it-all, but he could be really deep when he wanted to.

She looked into his emerald eyes. "Thanks, Drew. I really needed to hear that."

He smiled and nodded. It was occurring to him that soon, he'd have to take a similar risk.

The train arrived.

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He was hoping she'd be there. He wouldn't be able to do this if she wasn't.

Walking around Fall City, Drew went into the team base and tried to figure out a plan.

_This is ridiculous_, he thought. _I can't just randomly wander around, hoping to miraculously run into her. She might not even be in town._

Annoyed and feeling like an idiot for not asking for contact information last time her saw her, he decided to check out the town and see what was going on. It was a huge city compared to the others. The ball was going to be taking place at the Capture Arena. Only two days until the event.

After walking around for a while, he lost heart. _Forget it. This is stupid. She'll never sho-_

His thoughts were interrupted when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned around, and there she was. _No way. This can't be real… _

"Well well. Fancy running into you here," Liz said.

"Oh, uh, hey Liz," he managed. He was so paralyzed in shock that he could barely speak. Was this even real life? What are the odds…

"I… I was actually just thinking about you. What are you doing in this town?"

"My cousin lives here. I'm visiting for a few days. What about you?"

"Well I wanted to… um. I wanted to ask you…" he paused. He felt so weird doing this. It wasn't like him. The only kind of flirting he's ever known is teasing May and throwing out roses.

Liz figured it out pretty quickly. "Tell you what. Let's get dinner tonight, okay? I'll meet you here at 8."

And so it was. The two had their first date, and it was phenomenal. Liz developed feelings for Drew that reciprocated his. At the end of the night, the two walked down the dock together.

It was weird for him to be all mushy-romantic without really teasing her much or even flipping his hair. It didn't feel like him at all. But at the same time, he figured that he was 18 years old now. Not a kid anymore. Surely someone as sophisticated as Liz would want a mature man. Finally, he asked the question.

"Liz, will you go to Fall Con with me?"

"I thought you'd never ask," she teased. "I'd love to."

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May was sitting at a table at Koffing's Koffee. Turns out that place was a chain corporation and there was one in nearly every part of Fiore. Her body was shaking, her hands were numb, and her heart was pounding so fast that she thought she was going to have a legitimate anxiety attack.

In due time, Sam walked in, as planned. They greeted each other and hugged, proceeding to make small talk for a little. She was trying to put it off as long as possible. She couldn't believe how nervous she was about doing something so simple.

Sam was being his usual, sweet, charming self. This only made it more difficult. _I don't want to lose him_. After about an hour, he started to get up and grab his things, saying he was meeting with another friend soon and had to go.

"Sam, wait… do you have a couple more minutes? Can I talk to you about something?"

"Of course. What's up?"

She had rehearsed the lines in her head a thousand times, it seemed. For a moment, she just forgot about the situation and the possible bad outcomes, and just recited the lines.

"You're an awesome friend, and I just want to be real with you. I just wanted to say… I've liked you for a long time. You're really special to me. And… if you don't feel that way, that's okay, and I hope we can still be friends. I was just wondering if… maybe… you'd like to go to Fall Con with me?"

He looked down and smiled. After a moment he looked back at her with those gorgeous blue eyes and said, "Thank you for being honest with me. I appreciate that. The thing is, I'm just not looking right now. I'm not on the market. May, you're awesome and it's nothing against you. I just don't think it's gonna work out with us."

She tried to play it cool, holding back the tears. "Oh. Yeah, that… that's totally fine. I understand."

He got up and hugged her, but wouldn't look her in the eye. "Have a good day, okay?" and he was gone.

* * *

A/N: Sorry about the length of this chapter…

I was lazy with battle descriptions at the beginning cuz I don't really care lol. They aren't the main focus.

I feel like some of the Drew parts are so cheesy omg. As always, I'd love to improve, so constructive feedback would be much appreciated. More chapters in the making.


	7. Left Alone Somehow

She woke up to her tear-stained pillow. She had lain in bed for countless hours the night before, just crying and feeling depressed.

_Now we'll never be the same. He'll never want to be friends again. He couldn't even look me in the eye. He left so fast… but I still love him. He was so perfect. I think I'll always love him…_

When she woke up, the tears began flooding down once again. Sorrow felt like a disease she had and couldn't get rid of no matter how hard she tried.

The ball was tomorrow. She had traveled all the way out there, all for nothing. Only a heartbreak.

Eventually, Drew's words played back in her head.

_Sometimes you just need to take risks . . . If this guy cuts you out because you tell him you like him, then he's a jerk who was never worth being friends with…_

"Well…" she thought. "I guess I'm glad I took the risk instead of living with regret. But he's not a jerk and he didn't cut me out… I don't even know _what_ this is or what to do with it. How can I even face him again? But I don't want him to feel bad… it's not his fault…"

She sighed. She really wanted to talk to Drew about all this. Where was he anyway? Why was he coming to Fall City?

_What if I would've asked HIM to Fall Con…? ...Psh, yeah right. Dances aren't his thing._

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"You're amazing. I'll see you tonight," she said as she took the rose held out to her.

"See you tonight."

~.~.~

"I told you, I'm NOT going."

"Come on, May. Go out and have some fun. You don't need a date."

"I just can't do that, Solidad. I'm telling you, I'll be miserable. I need to get back to training."

"If you don't go, you might regret it for the rest of your life."

*Sigh*

"Just give it a try. If you hate it, what have you lost?"

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The lights were dim and moderately loud music was playing. There was a good amount of people there, but the arena was big enough that it didn't feel crowded. She entered alone, looking beautiful. Long red dress, black heels, hair in a bun, sparkling silver earrings.

"Hey there, gorgeous. You be lookin' _fine. _I bet you'll be reeling in ALL the boys tonight,_" _a voice said. May turned around to find her sassy friend Nate standing there in a tux.

"Oh, hi Nate. It's nice to see you again."

"Likewise, dollface. Hey, I gotta catch up with my buddies over there, but you look beautiful, girl. Keep it up," he said loudly as he was walking away.

The night went on. She probably spent close to an hour sitting alone at one of the tables, just watching all the happy couples dance the night away.

Eventually, she caught sight of Drew from a distance. What was he of all people doing there? Dances weren't his thing! She got up and went over to say hi. Before she approached him, she saw a girl go over and kiss him on the cheek. _WHOA. What?_

"Um… hey, Drew."

"What's up, May?" he said nonchalantly. "Oh, this is Liz."

The gorgeous woman by his side smiled at her and said, "Nice to meet you. Love that dress."

"Oh, thanks…"

"Are you here alone?" Drew asked.

"Yeah, I um… just wanted to check this out," she said shamefully.

Liz was nudging him towards the dance floor. "Well, hey, good seeing ya. Have a good night," he said as he walked off with his girlfriend. He was a little surprised, as he expected to see her with that guy she was talking about.

She went back to her table and watched those two dance. Drew wasn't too into it, to no surprise, but she couldn't deny that they looked cute together. She wondered what their story was. She thought about it, and soon began feeling frustrated. Disgusted, even. _What's so great about HER? What makes her so special? What could he POSSIBLY see in her besides her supermodel good looks? She's not even that great…_

Suddenly she snapped out of her trance. Her heart skipped a beat when she caught a glance of Sam across the room. Not thinking, she felt her body shoot out of her chair and found herself walking his way. _Why was she doing that?_

"Oh, hey May."

"Hey… how are you? …What brings you here? I uh… thought you'd be back training by now?" She rarely felt as awkward as she did in this moment.

"May… I-"

A woman came up to him and locked her arm with his. "Hey, you. Ready to dance?"

"May… this is Ellie. My… girlfriend."

Her heart sank. _Girlfriend? Was he kidding right now?_

May put on a fake smile. "Nice to meet you," and looked down.

Sam turned to Ellie and said, "Could you give us a second?"

"Sure. Love you," and she kissed him and went to the dance floor.

"So, girlfriend, huh? Guess it didn't take long for you to get back on the market…"

"It's only been a day. She came all the way out to Fiore from our hometown just to see me. May, I'm so sorry. I really am. She's been my best friend since we were kids… I really do love her."

May suddenly felt more angry than sad. She looked him straight in the eye and said, "You know what? Don't even worry about it. I hope you guys have lots of fun. Send me a postcard on your honeymoon."

She turned and walked away as quickly as she could. Sam felt bad, but he figured it couldn't be helped at this point, so he went and joined Ellie on the dance floor.

Sitting at the table again, she continued watching them. A romantic slow song came on. All the lovers were holding each other and gazing into each other's eyes. She watched Sam and Ellie. She watched Drew and Liz. All night, she had to watch them being all lovey-dovey with each other.

_What's so great about Ellie? How could he choose her over me? She's not even that pretty. I bet she's a total snob. Just look at the way she- oh, who am I kidding? She's gorgeous. She's perfect for him. Way better than I could ever be…_

She went into the bathroom, which was surprisingly empty. Locked herself in the handicap stall, leaning against the wall, and soon collapsed to the ground crying.

_Why didn't he like me? _She sat in that corner sobbing for the rest of the night.

It was supposed to be a fun night with Sam. That's why she came to Fall City. But instead she was left alone somehow.

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The slow songs ended and the regular music resumed.

"I'm gonna go get a drink. Be right back," Drew said. He went over to the table May was at, only to find her gone. He looked around for a few moments, but she was nowhere to be seen.

"Looking for someone?" Liz's sudden presence behind him made him jump a little.

"Oh, uh, I was just seeing if May was still here."

"So… what's the deal with this May girl? You guys seem pretty close, am I right?"

"She's an old friend and rival of mine."

Liz was starting to look grim in the face. He had never seen her that way before. "Let me ask you a question, Drew. Why were you constantly looking over at her while we were dancing?"

"Oh…" he hadn't realized he was doing that until she mentioned it. "Well, she looked upset, and I was a little concerned, that's all."

But honestly, _why was he doing that? Sure, she looked gorgeous and yeah, maybe he missed her, but so what? He had Liz. Why was he more interested in looking at May than at his girlfriend?_

"Oh, come on, Drew! You're so full of it. You looked at her more than you looked at me. Why the hell did you ask me to this if you're in love with someone else?!"

She was starting to get a little scary. There was fire in her eyes. Who was this woman? It certainly wasn't the same person he fell for in Summerland. Now he was getting angry too.

"Calm down, Liz! You're assuming something that you know nothing about! You don't know May, and you don't know the kind of relationship we have!"

"You know what? Maybe I don't. But neither do _you_. Screw you, Drew! Coming here with you was the dumbest thing I've ever done!"

With one more death glare, she stormed out.

And he was left alone somehow.

* * *

A/N: So, like I said at the beginning, this story is very personal to me. This chapter especially. But I'm glad that it was able to inspire me to write, and I would never think to write a story like this if it wasn't for that.

Always looking to improve my writing. Feedback please. More chapters to come.


	8. Summer Fling

A/N: FYI, this chapter is going to have some content that's more mature. Nothing super graphic or anything, but yeah. Just saying, viewer discretion is advised.

Also, it's a little lengthy.

* * *

It had been three weeks since Fall Con. May had stationed herself in Summerland for a while. She wasn't competing in contests, as she was still depressed. All she knew was that she wanted to go somewhere far away from Fall City.

Not a single day went by without her thinking about Sam. She missed him so much. She knew that she needed to get her mind off him and start training again, but lacked motivation. What was the point anymore?

Eventually, at the end of her third week there, she received a message saying that her next contest location was going to be there in Summerland.

"Well, I guess that works," she figured. "Guess I might as well compete in this one while it's here."

Summerland was a really chill place. It was relatively peaceful for her and she didn't want to leave. She went to the contest hall to check in, and went to her training session. Her first one in a long time.

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"Wartortle, use surf! Then aim ice beam at the sky!"

The blue turtle shot ice into the air, which was melted by the intense sunlight and came down like sprinkling rain through the light breeze, as Wartortle rode through the sea on a wave.

"Good work, Wartortle. I'm really proud of you, especially after so much time off. You can take a good rest now." She called it back and went into the clocking room.

There was a group of guys in there too, all friends. She didn't know any of them and didn't feel like talking to them. Just wasn't in the socializing mood.

The next day, she went to her session and started setting up by the shore. Wartortle was going to use surf to pull her by a rope from behind. She started pumping air into a raft to ride on. A couple guys there were doing the same.

"How are you, May? That's your name, right?" one of the guys asked.

She had never met this guy before, but recognized him from the clocking room the previous day. He didn't seem like the nicest person then, but now he seemed friendly enough.

"Oh? Yeah, that's me. I'm doing okay… what was your name?"

"I'm Neil. Good to meet you."

The two talked for a while, and he was surprisingly really nice. She genuinely enjoyed talking to him. For the next couple days, they talked and hung out at the beach for some time after their sessions.

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The contest was postponed for a week because a couple of the judges had gotten sick. No extra training was required, so the coordinators had a lot of free time on their hands.

There was still almost a whole week before the contest. It was Saturday morning. May felt bored. She checked her PokeNav and saw a message from Neil:

"It was fun hanging with you yesterday!"

She replied, "Yeah, I really enjoyed it! I don't know anyone else who would want to spend a whole day just hanging out on the dock."

"Yeah, me neither. The only one I know is a pretty girl named May."

She paused for a moment. _Pretty girl? What does that- does he like me or something?_

Not even knowing how she felt about him, she decided to ignore the comment. But also feeling bored (and lonely), she ended up sending, "Are you free tonight?"

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They were hanging out in his room. He lived in Summerland and only occasionally traveled for contests. She was just watching him play some first-person shooter game, when his roommate came in.

"Hey man, Steve's throwing a party tonight. You in?"

"Hell yeah, man. What time?"

"Soon. We should head out now. Oh, and we don't have to bring our own booze. He's got TONS."

"Sweet dude, let's go." He grabbed his stuff and headed for the door, before quickly turning around. "Oh, May, did you wanna come too?"

"Um, I don't think so. I'm only 18 and those kinds of parties aren't my thing…"

"Oh, come on, it'll be fun. What else are you gonna do tonight, anyway?"

She shamefully figured why not. She'd make an appearance, but that was it. Neil was a mystery, that's for sure. Did he like her or not? He sure was awful hasty to ditch her for this party…

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The living room at this Steve guy's place was packed. So many people, all beyond wasted. Neil too. He was currently chugging a cup of beer after losing a game of beer pong. He then proceeded to high-five his buddies and join them in making raunchy jokes and hitting on the girls there.

May was disgusted. Why did she even come to this wild party? Why did she ever suspect that Neil liked her? He's nothing but a huge flirt. She headed towards the door to leave, when someone there caught her eye.

What was Brian doing there? Even though she knew he didn't like her at all, she was relieved to see that there was another sober person there. She went over and sat by him on the couch.

"Hi Brian. What brings you here?"

"My roommate dragged me."

"Oh, you live in this town?"

"Yeah."

"Are you still competing?"

"Sometimes."

"Oh, okay. Well I'm sure you're busy. I understand that. This'll be my first contest in over a month."

"Cool."

She was getting really annoyed. It was like talking to a wall. Why did he dislike her so much? But she really didn't care. After some awkward silence, it occurred to her that maybe she could ask about Sam.

"So… how's Sam doing? Is his musical career doing well? …How's Ellie?"

He finally gave her more than a word. "Sam's good. The band's been getting a lot of gigs. He and Ellie are really happy together. He waited forever for her, and now she's here and they're good."

_Guess that's it, then. Those two were meant to be. There's no use in holding onto false hope anymore…_

_But Sam… he was so amazing…_

Suddenly, May felt a rush running through her. There were a bunch of shot glasses on the counter filled with hard liquor. She grabbed one and quickly chugged it down. Then grabbed another. And another. Many more. Before she knew it, the world became a blur.

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"Ow… my head."

May woke up in her room at the Pokemon Center. What the heck happened last night? The last thing she could remember was her conversation with Brian. The information she received. Sam…

There was a note on the nightstand. "You passed out last night so I brought you back. –Neil"

"Oh man, what did I do?"

She messaged Neil, thanking him for getting her back. Shortly later he replied, "Anytime, cutie (:"

This guy was unbelievable. But still, it was nice of him to look after her like that… right?

Hours passed. Sunday evening and still nothing to do. She felt lonely. She really just wanted to talk to someone… anyone. The only person she could think to meet up with was Neil. So she called him.

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They watched TV at his place for a while. His roommate was gone for the night. She sensed him gradually moving closer to her as the night went on. She was still thinking about Sam, but at the same time… here was a guy right next to her who was at least somewhat interested. There was a romantic love scene playing on the TV. A happy couple just being happy and adorable, with beautiful music playing. She wanted that. So badly. And before she knew it, she had her arms around Neil and was kissing him. And he enjoyed that.

Waking up the next morning, she realized she was still at his place. And there he was.

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The contest was the next day. May was still rusty in her training, but honestly didn't care much. She didn't expect to win this one anyways, and was only doing it because she was in town and wanted a distraction from Sam.

She got a message. "Hey cutie, a bunch of us are going out tomorrow night. You wanna come?"

She said yes. She and Neil had been having a bit of a summer fling for six days now. She didn't know why. She wasn't even that attracted to him. But he was fun and cute. And he seemed to like her back.

Tomorrow came. May decided to hang out with Neil in the morning before the contest. He had his arm around her, proudly displaying her to all his buddies. But the crazy thing was, she was becoming more and more attracted to him despite all of the things she hated about him.

"You know, shorty… this has been a good week. I wouldn't have wanted to spend it with any other girl."

She stopped walking. Turning to him, she said, "Hey, let's bail. Let's blow off the contest, and go somewhere. Do something crazy. Just you and me."

He raised an eyebrow. "Well that was awful sudden."

"COME ON, NEIL! There will be other contests. Let's live in the moment and be crazy."

He laughed. "I'm really teaching you well, huh cutie?"

They stole a raft from the training session storage while the supervisor wasn't looking and sailed around for the rest of the day. They came back just in time for the guys' night at the bar.

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May didn't know what she was doing there. She hated bars. She didn't want to drink, though Neil and the others were already so far gone. She went to the bathroom and came back out, only to find them all missing.

Having not the slightest clue where they went, she left. Outside, she faintly heard their voices. She went around to the back of the building, and found them all sitting there getting high. Neil saw her and went up to kiss her, but it was in that moment that she felt her senses finally turn back on. She pushed him away.

"What's your problem, May?" he tried to kiss her again, but she continued holding him back. He wouldn't let go.

"Get away from me, Neil." She finally broke free and ran out of there as fast as she could, crying. _What in the world was she thinking, fooling around with someone like him?_

"Yeah, well screw you too, May!"


	9. Forgiven

A/N: This is the chapter where things get a little spiritual. As always, viewer discretion is advised if you're not into that stuff.

Also, I guess I should mention that, when I write, I like to pretend that Sinnoh and all the generations after that don't exist. I guess you could say I'm more old school, and so all those generations after Hoenn are just not a thing in the context of this story. Therefore, Arceus does not exist and is not the "god" of the Pokemon world. So with that in mind, here's chapter 9…

* * *

The dawn was breaking. The city was quiet. Alone, she arose from bed and sat by the window. She was back where it all began, in Ringtown. She had begun questioning why she was even waking up anymore.

Outside the window, rangers were patrolling the town with their Pokemon partners. Coordinators were doing some early morning training with their beloved Pokemon. They were all having a blast out there. So happy. So cheerful. _Remember the days when I was like that?_

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Everything was all the same, every day. Nothing ever changed. Drew was still residing in Fall City, competing in the contests he was assigned to in the nearby locations. He had lost every single one since Fall Con. He stopped caring after a while. He only needed one more ribbon anyway.

Whenever he walked through the city, he tried to stay away from the Capture Arena. Even just looking at that place brought back memories that he wish he could forget. But all the same, he couldn't stop thinking about someone. And oddly enough, it wasn't Liz.

_"So… what's the deal with this May girl? You guys seem pretty close, am I right?"_

_…_

_"Oh, come on, Drew! You're so full of it. You looked at her more than you looked at me. Why the hell did you ask me to this if you're in love with someone else?!"_

_ "Calm down, Liz! You're assuming something that you know nothing about! You don't know May, and you don't know the kind of relationship we have!"_

_"You know what? Maybe I don't. But neither do_ _YOU_."

He thought about that every day. What _was_ his relationship with May? Rivals? Friends? Or did it go deeper than that? Why did he always give her roses and tease her? Why was her career as a coordinator more important to him than anyone else's? Why did he always feel so different around her, feel the need to impress her, feel the need to push her to be the best she could be? …Why did he stare at her all night at Fall Con?

Every time he got too deep into those kinds of thoughts, he pushed them away and thought about other things. He may have had some sort of feelings for May in the past, but that was the past. It's not like he'd ever _tell_ her or anything. That would be outrageous. Besides, she loved that other guy anyway…

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Walking into the team base one day, he saw a familiar pink-head. Apparently Solidad was a good friend of Joel's, who was the leader of that town.

"Hey there, Drew. How are ya? It's been ages."

"Hi Solidad. I've been alright. Just chilling out today."

Joel was calling for her.

"Hey, I really need to talk to Joel right now. But how about we meet up for coffee tonight? Sound good?"

"Sure, let's do it."

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"So, how have you been doing in contests? Do you have all 5 ribbons yet?"

"I'm getting there. Got 4 so far. How are you? What was so important at the base today?"

"Well, Joel has asked me to help out with Fiore's Grand Festival this year. It's going to be held at the Fiore Temple. I expect to see you there," she said with a wink.

"Yeah…" he looked down, zoning out for a moment.

"Is everything alright?"

He snapped out of it. "Yeah, everything's cool."

She crossed her arms. "Come on Drew, I know you better than this. You seem down. What's up?"

"I uh… haven't won a contest in a while. It's been over a month since my last ribbon."

She leaned a little closer. "And?"

"And… what?"

She sighed. "So, what else is happening besides contests? How's May doing?"

There was a lengthy pause. Solidad knew what was up. She was just waiting to hear it.

"I actually haven't seen May in a long time. We've been separated most of the time in this region. See, they have this system where we get sent to different-"

"You miss her, don't you?"

Another pause.

"Come on Drew, you know that if you can talk to anyone about anything, you can talk to me."

He sighed. She was right.

"I had a girlfriend for a little bit. It didn't last long. We broke up because… because I think I'm in love with May."

She smiled sweetly. "There it is."

"You knew?!"

"Of course I knew!" she laughed. "Drew, I think it's great. And I know that May loves you too. It was so obvious the first time I saw you two together back in Kanto."

"Yeah well… it's just a dumb thing that will fade with time. She's not even that important to me anymore. I never see her."

"Drew, sometimes in life you need to take chances. Find her and tell her how you feel. But first, take some time to be honest with _yourself_. Realize that you DO have feelings for her. Stop trying to deny it. If you don't recognize your own feelings, you'll never be able to communicate them with someone else."

He thought about it all for a few moments. He smiled at his pink-haired friend. With things like this, Solidad was often times the voice of reason in his life.

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May was at Koffing's Koffee in Ringtown. By now she had become numb to the feelings and memories of hurt and bitterness, and being there no longer bothered her. She was sitting at the counter ordering a drink.

"I'll take a mocha frap," a woman said as she sat down by May.

May's eyes widened and heart started pounding when she realized who this woman was. "Lacey Sturm? From Flyleaf?!"

Lacey turned around and smiled sweetly. "Yep, that's me."

"Wow… hi, I'm May. Big fan…" she was feeling nervous, but Lacey's kind demeanor calmed her down.

"Nice to meet you, May. I appreciate that."

_Wow. Crazy how I met "prince charming" the first time I came here, and now I'm meeting a celebrity…_

She didn't realize that she was actually thinking out loud in that moment.

"What was that? Something about prince charming?" Lacey smiled.

"Oh, sorry, I didn't mean to say that out loud…" May scratched her head. "It was just some guy…"

"Who was this guy?"

At this point, she just wanted to tell someone. A rockstar wasn't the ideal person she had in mind to talk about it with, but Lacey was sweet and she already felt comfortable around her. "Okay, the thing is… he was like no guy I've ever known…"

She told the story. All about Sam, her love for him, the ball. She even started talking about Neil and the fling she had with him, at which point she started to cry.

"I just… don't understand why it all had to happen this way. I loved Sam… I saw myself actually being with him."

Lacey looked at her with honest eyes. "Sometimes God has different plans from ours. Sometimes we don't understand things that happen, but we have to know that He wants the best for us. He wants us to have life to the fullness of what it's meant to be."

She never thought about that. She never thought about God these days.

"After everything with Neil… I just felt so worthless. I don't know why I ran off with him and did the things I did… and I hate myself for that. I wish I could forget…"

She put her hand on her shoulder. "May. God forgives you. No matter who you are, what you believe, what you do or what you've done, He loves you. There's nothing you can do that could change that. Jesus died to take your shame away. You don't have to hate yourself. You don't have to feel shameful. _You are forgiven._"

Lacey had to leave to meet her bandmates. May stayed there for hours, just thinking about everything. When she left and headed back to the Pokemon Center, she felt more at peace.

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Nurse Joy brought a letter to May's room. It was from Solildad.

_Dear May,_

_I hope you are doing well and that your journey in Fiore has been successful so far. It's been a while and I just wanted to write you a quick letter._

_We never get the chance to just sit and talk anymore. There are a lot of things I've been wanting to tell you, so I figured this would be the best way for right now._

_Looking back, I have seen so much growth in you. You really impressed me in Johto, and you have really come a long way since our first battle at the Kanto Grand Festival. I'm really proud of you. You've always stayed strong and have never given up. Even after Harley took the cup home in Johto, you still continued your journey and challenged yourself by coming to Fiore. Your courage is admirable._

_The biggest thing though, is your love for people. You care so deeply for your friends. You would do anything for them. You love them as yourself. When things get hard, you forgive them. Take Harley for example, with all the things he used to do. You let it all go and forgave. You have an amazing heart._

_I hope and pray that the fire in your heart continues to burn with love and passion. You have so much going for you. And you know, I'll always be pulling for you._

_With the best of regards,_

_Solidad_

May took a walk around town. For the first time in months, good and positive flashbacks came flooding in rather than negative ones. Memories of past contests, times with friends and family… times with Drew and their travels together. She reflected on all of the amazing things in her life, and finally realized that nothing has changed. She still has those amazing friends, a good life, a successful coordinating career, Pokemon she raised for years and cares deeply about. Just because things went wrong with a couple of guys and she made mistakes, doesn't change the fact that she lived a blessed life. She was forgiven.

Looking up at the sky, she closed her eyes and whispered, "I know I don't say this enough, but thank You."

* * *

A/N: One last chapter in the making. Also, yes, I had to bring in Lacey Sturm from Flyleaf lol. Couldn't help it. She's a phenomenon.


	10. It Was Always You

It was a beautiful day to take a walk through Lyra Forest. The sky was lightly overcast, it was quiet outside, and no contests were taking place in Ringtown or any of the surrounding areas that week.

May walked through Labyrinth Grove. It was peaceful and serene; perfect for calming the spirit. She was much more collected now about the whole romance situation. She wasn't even longing for Sam anymore. Rather, during her long walk, she started fantasizing:

She saw someone standing out in the distance; a mystery man.

He held his hand out to her and had the sweetest smile.

He whispered "I love you" and she took his hand and they walked off out of sight together.

Snapping out of her trance, she came into a hazy part of the forest. A Murkrow had used a haze attack and it was hard to see anything through the blackness. Bumping into trees and other foliage, she felt hopelessly lost and thought she might not see the light of day again. It was getting hard to breathe. The haze was getting thicker and soon, her vision was completely clouded by the darkness and breathing was not possible.

All of a sudden, a strong gust of wind came. The smoke cleared and May ran out of there as quickly as possible. High up in the sky, she saw a Masquerain flying away.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

She was finally approaching the end of the forest. She had been out all day and the sun was setting. Reaching the end, she saw someone standing there in the distance. A man. _Am I in my daydream again?_

The Masquerain floated down towards this man. Getting closer, she could finally see who this man was.

"Drew? Is that you?"

"It is." He was holding a rose in his hand.

"What are you doing here? There aren't any contests…"

He slowly started walking towards her. "I know. I came to see _you_."

"Me? Why? I-"

"May, remember that time we were at the Wintown train station? You were telling me about that guy you wanted to ask to Fall Con, and I told you that sometimes we need to take risks."

She looked down. "Drew, I don't really want to think about Fall Con and all that right now."

He continued. "Now it's my turn to take a risk. I… figured I should take my own advice."

"…What do you mean?"

There was a pause.

He spoke softly. "I like you, May. Always have."

In that moment, it all became so clear. That mystery man… it was Drew. It was always Drew. She had an epiphany. _What was she doing all this time? Chasing after Sam, Neil… guys who had no interest in her and hardly even cared about her at all. But all that time, there Drew was, standing there at the end of the road waiting for her, with a rose in hand and ready to take her away._

When the epiphany ended, she realized that she had thrown her arms around him. _It was always you._

She backed up and gave him a sassy look. "Well, Mr. Rose, it looks like you've become pretty humble. When did _this_ happen?"

He flipped his hair and smirked. "It comes and goes."

She smiled and looked him in the eye. "Drew… you flipped your hair. It's good to have the real you back."

He looked back at her. He hadn't realized that it had been so long since he flipped his hair. He never did that around Liz and never felt the need to after she was gone. There was no one he felt the need to impress. Not until now.

"Wait… what about that girl Liz? You seemed to really like her. I thought-"

"It's over with Liz. It didn't work out because… because you were always more important to me. You shine brighter than anyone."

He tossed her the rose.

May was blushing. She never imagined he could be such a hopeless romantic. At the same time, he was still his cool, cocky self. She loved that.

She took him by the hand. "Drew, let's go. Let's leave Fiore, and go somewhere, _anywhere_. We don't have to go to the Grand Festival. We don't have to make such an idol out of the ribbon cup. I just want us to be together again."

He thought for a moment, flipped his hair, and smiled at her. "Let's do it, Ace."

So, the two hopped on a ferry and rode off into the distance. And thus May's fantasy came true in full.

* * *

A/N: Mehhhhh. I really don't like how this last chapter came out. So cheesy and I suck with endings. Also, I haven't watched the episodes with Drew and all them in about a year, so any OOCness is probably because of that.

But yeah, that's the story. "You shine brighter" comes from Paramore's song "Brighter." Nothing in this story was inspired by that song besides that one sentence and the title.

And, idk where "Ace" came from lol. I think I've been watching too much Gilmore Girls lately…

Well, this story was super different from the ones I've written in the past. Not sure how I feel about it. But I would love to know from others. Please feel free to review with CONSTRUCTIVE criticism. If you hated it, thought it sucked, etc. then tell me WHY. Just saying you hate it doesn't help me improve for the future. And if there were good things you liked, let me know about those things too so I know to gravitate towards them in future stories. (:


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